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Eddie Chikamhi

Senior Sports Reporter

THE T20I series between Zimbabwe and Pakistan, which gets underway at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium today remains a David versus Goliath affair.

But the visitors are hoping to ride on their newly-found momentum to cause an upset.

The Chevrons know they have to move mountains, if head-to-head statistics and the current rankings, are to be used.

They have never beaten the Men in Green in a T20I match since they met for the first time in 2008 during the four-team T20 tournament in Canada.

Most of the contests, thereafter, have been described as “mismatches”, with Zimbabwe losing all 11 meetings.

The Chevrons, however, come into the contest today after a spirited Super Over win, in the just-ended One Day International series.

The result, which guaranteed Zimbabwe their first set of points in the ICC World Cup Super League, has given Chamu Chibhabha and his men a renewed sense of belief.

They feel they can also win games against the big teams.

Zimbabwe had not beaten Pakistan in their backyard in 22 years before Tuesday’s success.

Chibhabha told journalists, via video conference, his team needed to have a positive approach to the game.

Despite losing the ODI series 1-2, the 34-year-old said his side had arrived in Pakistan with the mentality to win matches, regardless of the format.

“As I said, when we arrived in Pakistan, as a team we want to be winning more matches.

‘’It doesn’t matter what format it is, we want to play the brand of cricket that wins us matches.

‘’That is our mentality.

“I said, in the last match that we won, that we were the better side. We all believe that.

‘’Now, it is up to us to execute that on the field in order to get the results that we want.

‘’We honestly believe that we are a better team and that we are capable of winning the T20I series,” Chibhabha said.

While the skipper is still to find form during the tour, Zimbabwe have had some positive performances from veterans, Sean Williams and Brendan Taylor, who each scored a century in the ODI series.

Another experienced hand, Elton Chigumbura, is expected to be introduced in the T20I series along with Ryan Burl and Tendai Chatara.

Up and coming all-rounder, Wesley Madhevere, and the hero of the third ODI, Blessing Muzarabani, will be among the men to watch again in the shorter version.

Zimbabwe are still trying to shake off the rust, from eight months of inactivity due to the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown.

They last played Bangladesh in T20Is back in February this year.

They lost the series 0-2.

Pakistan have since played a series against world number two England.

The three-match series took place in England between August and September and it ended in a 1-1 draw.

Pakistan are ranked fourth on the ICC T20I world rankings while Zimbabwe are a distant 11th.

The Chevrons have lost more matches than they have won since they started playing this format in 2006.

Chibhabha, however, feels things changed following Tuesday’s win.

“It just goes to show that if you come in as a team, you believe in yourself, then you can achieve anything.

‘’The attitude in the camp is about winning games, no more excuses. That is what we are focusing on,” he said.

Former world champions Pakistan made three changes in their squad ahead of the T20I series.

The Pakistan Cricket Board announced the altered squad after Haris Sohail, Abid Ali and Imam-ul-Haq were released from the squad that took part in the ODI series.

They continue to be without the injured Shadab Khan. Imad Wasim and Ifthikar Ahmed will likely continue in the spin department.

Pakistan T20I’s against

Zimbabwe:

 Pakistan: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Abdullah Shafiq, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Rizwan, Musa Khan, Rohail Nazir, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usman Qadir, Wahab Riaz and Zafar Gohar

Zimbabwe: Chamu Chibhabha (capt), Faraz Akram, Ryan Burl, Brian Chari, Tendai Chatara, Elton Chigumbura, Tendai Chisoro, Craig Ervine, Tinashe Kamunhukamwe, Wesley Madhevere, Wellington Masakadza, Carl Mumba, Richmond Mutumbami, Blessing Muzarabani, Richard Ngarava, Sikandar Raza, Milton Shumba, Brendan Taylor, Donald Tiripano, Sean Williams